Numerous Korean and English ministries of Korean churches all over southern California have been organizing Adopt a Day 815 Dedication Worship, a prayer movement to be held to celebrate Korea's independence and also to intercede on behalf of North Korea.
Next year (2015) will be the 70th year of Korean independence. Korea was freed from Japanese imperialism on August 15th, 1945, but was also simultaneously divided into North and South Korea on that day. What was supposed to be only a two to three year division has now lasted almost 70 years.
"We hope and pray that the Lord will help to fulfill a peaceful reunification of Korea. We ask all Christians, who believe in the power of God, to gather together and pray for His grace and mercy," said Dr. Timothy Park, one of the organizers of the event and the Director of Korean Intercultural Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary. "We invite all Christians who are concerned about North Korea to join us in this prayer movement," he added.
The endorsers and organizers of Adopt a Day 815 invites Christians to join the prayer movement to pray on behalf of North Korea, especially because of the fact that it is the 69th anniversary. Daniel, in Daniel chapter 9, was also in the 69th year of Israel's exile when he read Jeremiah's prophecy that Israel's exile would last 70 years, and he prayed a prayer of repentance and petition on behalf of Israel.
"We are at that window where Daniel was at," the organizers explained.
Adopt a Day 815 was hence created to provide information for churches in the U.S. about Korean independence and history, and also use that as a segue to pray for North Korea.
"As we approach this 70th anniversary, our prayer is that God would heal our land (2 Chronicles 7:14, Jeremiah 29:10, Daniel 9:4-19) and North Korea will be a blessing to all the nations (Acts 1:8)," the mission statement on the event website reads. "In short, our mission is to seek God's love to abound in North Korea (John 3:16)."
The hope for the event is that 100 attendees from Korean ministries, English ministries, and even those who are not part of the Korean church at all, would come and pray for North Korea "in the spirit of humility and unity."
The event will be on Friday, August 15th, from 10 A.M. to 11:30 A.M. at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles. Although the event is free, all those interested must RSVP on their website due to limited seating.
Adopt a Day 815 Dedication Worship will feature seven speakers who are professionals with a deep concern for North Korea, including Dr. Timothy Park, the Director of Korean Intercultural Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pastor Jim-Bob Park, the senior pastor of Oriental Mission Church, Dr. Mary Kay Park, professor of Intercultural Studies at Biola University, and Dr. Benjamin Shin, the Director of Asian American Ministry at Talbot Theological Seminary.
For more information regarding the mission of the event, parking, and RSVP, please visit the event website.
This article has been updated on August 13, 3:00 PM to include Dr. Park's remarks.
